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~ MATCH REPORTS ~ Welcome Club v Archer First frame of the night this week was played by Denny Smith, and with the balls spread all over the table he decided to go for the clearance. He almost got it, but as soon as he missed he was snookered several times. After getting a couple of fouls, a good clearance put Welcome Club 1-0 up. The second frame saw Brian Wilson play and he had a golden chance to level things up. However, in a moment of madness Brian managed to put far too much top spin on the ball and followed through, potting the white. The resulting 2 shots were enough for a good clearance by the young lad from Welcome Club, making the scores 2-0. Danny Toms played third, and both players in this frame played well. Towards the end of the frame, the Welcome player had a perfect chance to snooker Danny and try to get 2 shots, but decided to go for the game. Unfortunately for him the white went off a couple of cushions and in to the corner pocket. Danny cleared well to make the scores 2-1. Steve Munroe played fourth, and he played well with the exception of 1 mistake - touching the white ball when lining his shot up. Fortunately that mistake went unpunished and he came back to the table and cleared confidently to level the scores at 2-2. Dan Walsh played the fifth frame and was in superb potting form. Some great shots from Dan led to him taking the frame and that made the scores 2-3. Gary Brookman went on next and had a chance to clear up early on, but as soon as he missed a shot he was in trouble. The Welcome Club player played well to take the frame and once more the scores were level, 3-3. I played the seventh frame, and continued my run of good form. A couple of good pots left me in a good position, and I cleared up to retake the lead at 3-4 Eddie Williams played eighth and he went for the clearance when possibly should have played safe. It still took a good clearance, though, and credit to the Welcome player for finishing off to level the scores once more at 4-4. Geoff Riley played the ninth frame and played well. One shot nearly threw the game away (under-hitting a shot in to the middle), but fortunately his opponent failed to clear and Geoff was able to come back to the table and finish the frame off, 4-5. Steve Munroe played again in the last frame, and didn't have a chance. He didn't really play any bad shots, but finished the night on the wrong side of a 7 baller. It made him feel slightly better (but not much) to know that as it was his opponents second frame of the night he would not get a medal for it! Final score of the night was 5-5.
Archer v BATA Club First up for The Archer this week was John Jackson. This was a close frame and was decided when a yellow dropped with noone near the table. As the Bata player had not yet touched the table, a foul had to be called against John and after some good play by the Bata player John struggled to get back in the frame. First blood to Bata, 0-1. Gary Brookman played second and he missed a number of chances, and in the end they prooved to be costly as the scores went to 0-2. Danny Toms played third and should have won, but after running out of position on the black, he made the schoolboy error of potting both the black and the white, 0-3. Dan Walsh next and in a tight frame Dan played well. Both players rattled a ball each towards the end of the frame, before Dan rolled in the simplest of blacks to take the frame, 1-3. Brian Wilson fifth and in a close frame it appeared that both players tried to lose! Only 1 of them could succeed though, and it was Brian that won the frame to bring the scores back to 2-3. Denny Smith played the sixth frame and after having the day from hell, his evening didn't turn out very good either. Not a great frame from Denny, which allowed the Bata player to take the frame well and make the score 2-4.Steve Munroe played seventh and he played well, starting to come in to form. He kept the frame under control until he was given a chance, and then he took his chance well to bring the scores back to 3-4. I played in the eighth and this followed a similar pattern. Several tactical shots to start with but once I got 2 shots I cleared the table to level the scores, 4-4. Geoff Riley played in the ninth frame, and for some unknown reason he appeared to rush several of his shots. This lead to a few poor shots, and the frame slipped away to make it 4-5. Gary Brookman went back on for the last frame of the night, and again couldn't find the sort of form that we all know he is capable of. Another below par performance from him left the final scores at 4-6 to the Bata Club.
The Oaks v Archer This week we were up against The Oaks, who are a decent team despite their current league position. The first frame saw Dan Walsh play against Jamie Carey, and this was a quick frame that Dan could have cleared from the break. However, when playing an awkward 3 ball plant he left his ball hanging over the pocket. Jamie potted a few and snookered Dan, and when Dan failed to get out of the snooker Jamie cleared well to take the opener, 1-0. The second frame saw Danny Toms play well and he controlled the frame from the off. He nearly got a 7 ball, but he lost position on the black and could only rattle what was a difficult cut. However, it wasn't too long before he was allowed back to the table to get out of a snooker and knock the black in, 1-1. Gary Brookman played third, and this was a tactical frame in which both players had chances. Gary probably had the better of the chances, but when on the black he played (in my opinion) the wrong choice of shot, which left his opponent a chance. That chance was taken to make it 2-1 to The Oaks. Brian Wilson played fourth and he started off well. The Oaks player did come back in to the frame and made it closer than I thought it was going to be, but a mistake by him let Brian back to the table to take a fine cut on the black and level the scores, 2-2. I played fifth and I played really well, including a few great shots (if I do say so myself!), and I managed to take the frame to put us in the lead for the first time at 2-3. Denny Smith played sixth against Andy Curran, and Denny didn't play badly. The problem for us is that Andy played very well and cleared the table to level the scores at 3-3. Steve Munroe played seventh in a cagey frame. After snookering himself when he had 2 shots, Steve kept his nerve well to get out of the self-imposed snooker and clear the last few balls to make it 3-4. Geoff Riley played eighth, and this was another frame that could have gone either way. It took a good clearance to win it, and unfortunately the clearance was not from Geoff and so the scores were once again level, 4-4. Danny Toms played ninth against Jamie Carey, and although Danny missed a few shots, he still managed to edge Jamie out to take the frame and guarantee us at least a point, 4-5. I played the last frame against Andy Curran, and this wasn't a bad frame for either player, but 1 poor shot from me let Andy in for a good clearance to level the match at 5-5.
Archer v Billet Bullets After last week's win we found ourselves up in the dizzy heights of 4th place (we are not used to being that high!), so it was a good job we were brought crashing back down to Earth this week. Danny Toms played the first frame of the night against Brian Shepherd, and this was a close frame until Danny played a poor shot, failing to get out of a snooker off 1 cushion. The resulting 2 shots were enough for Brian to clear well to make it 0 - 1. Gary Brookman played against Mark Nicholls in the second, and this frame could have gone either way, but when playing a safety on the black, Mark managed to fluke the black in to the middle to make it 0 - 2. Brian Wilson played Kirk Knight in the third and Kirk had Brian on the back foot from the off. Both players played quite well, but as soon as Brian made a mistake Kirk made full use of his 2 shots and cleared up, 0 - 3. I played Terry Marsh next and this was quite a tactical frame, and in the end it again took just 1 mistake to settle this frame. Unfortunately, I was the one that made the mistake, and Terry cleared well to take the scores to 0 - 4. Steve Munroe played against Gordon Logan in the fifth and this was another cagey affair, but Steve was left in a few awkward positions and that led to him giving away a couple of fouls. Gordon played well and took full advantage, taking the frame to make it 0 - 5. Fearing the worst, Geoff Riley decided that he was going to play the sixth, and he played Dave Smith. This was to prove to be the most tactical (dare I say boring???) frame of the night, and lasted a mere 55 minutes. After managing to play his way around every inch of the table, Geoff finally managed to take the frame to ensure that there was not going to be a whitewash, 1 - 5. Denny Smith played the seventh against Ricky Lazarus, and this was a tight frame. In the end though a fluke on his last red and a good double on the black gave Denny the frame to make it 2 - 5. John Jackson played Ricky Rhead in the eighth and although Ricky played well, John was unlucky to go in-off. However, the resulting 2 shots led to Ricky taking the frame well and the score went to 2 - 6. Stuart Drewell played against Rob Lee in the ninth, and as the match was over Stuart didn't seem bothered about safety play, and went for the game. unfortunately, he failed to get it and Rob claimed the frame to make it 2 - 7. Geoff Riley played the last frame against Ian Nicholls, and again played well. Geoff took the frame comfortably to restore some margin of respectability as the final score ended at 3 - 7. Archer v Wooden Fortress First up this week was Dan Walsh against Perry Coote. Both players had a good game although there were 1 or 2 slight misjudgements by Dan, which led to a great pot on the black by Perry to take the opening frame, 0-1. Brian Wilson went on second for us and either player could have won this, but in the end a mistake let Brian in for an easy black to level things up at 1-1. Gary Brookman played third against Roy Atkins, and this must have been 1 of the slowest games ever! It was worth the wait though, as Gary finally got the 2 shots that he needed to finish the frame off, 2-1. Denny Smith next and just 1 mistake from him lead to a good clearance to level the match at 2-2. Steve Munroe played fifth and had a chance to clear up, but a missed plant was to cost him the frame as the scores went to 2-3. I played against Gary Thomas next, and both of us tried to lose. Luckily for me Gary was in a generous mood and missed a reasonably easy ball, leaving me the black over the pocket, 3-3. Eddie Williams played seventh against Tim Donovan, and both of them played well. In the end thouggh a missed black by Eddie left Tim a chance to clear and he took it, 3-4. Geoff Riley next and some superb safety play by Geoff combined with a bit of bad fortune for his opponent left Geoff with an awkward black, but he potted it well despite being under pressure to level at 4-4. John Jackson played ninth and he just lost out in a tight frame despite playing well, and the scores were now 4-5. With our backs against the wall, Gary Brookman played the final frame and in another close frame Gary must have let his concentration drop or something as he played a poor shot which let his opponent back in to clear. Final score was 4-6 to the Wooden Fortress. Archer v Athlone House First frame of the night was played by Dan Walsh, and in a tactical frame just 1 mistake by the Athlone player allowed Dan in, who cleared well after missing the opening shot of his visit. 1-0 to The Archer. The second frame saw Denny Smith play well, and in an open frame he came out on top to give us 2-0 lead. New signing Stuart Drewell made his debut in the third frame, and after a scrappy start to the frame he finished well (with a little bit of good fortune) to make it 3-0. Brian Wilson played fourth and looked comfortable throughout the frame, and he had soon extended our lead to 4-0. Gary Brookman played next and was rather lucky to fluke the black, but overall in the frame probably deserved the win, 5-0. Steve Munroe played next and should have made it 6-0, but not finishing the black with 2 shots cost him the frame, 5-1. I played the seventh frrame and neither of us played well. I should have lost the frame, but fortunately fo me I was able to clear up after getting an unexpected chance, 6-1. Lewis Jackson played eighth and he had a chance to take the frame, but after playing well he missed a long black. Well played despite losing out, 6-2. John Jackson played next to try to better his son, but he missed a few chances in this frame and the final mistake was leaving the black in the jaws of the pocket. 6-3 the score. Geoff Riley played the last frame, and he played as bad as I did! However, he did not get as many chances as I did and unfortunately he lost the frame leaving the final score at 6-4. Wooden Fortress v Billet Bullets We always look forward to this match, the fortress have long been a benchmark for us on how well we are doing in a season, if the result of this game is anything to go by then we could be in for another bumper season. We travelled the short distance from our new home with a full strength squad to chose from, Billet new boys Gordon Logan and Colin West returning to their old venue. To kick things off for us was Mr Consistency Brian Shepherd, undoubtedly he is one of the toughest members of our team to beat, in this instance he played Steve Watling and steve simply didn't have what it takes to beat Brian and we were 1-0 up. On next for us "The Guvnor" Gordon Logan, playing none other than the honorary scouser Roy Atkins (What is it with his hair?), Gordon should of had a seven baller but failed to clear, however, Roy could not capitalise and Gordon managed to pull off the win, 2-0. On third for us was "The Hurricane" Mark Nicholls, know as the hurrican not for his speed around the table but for his speed in clearing a plate. Mark's potting is simply superb at the moment and he was never troubled in this frame as he put us 3-0 up. On next, making a welcome return Kirk "The Zulu Warrior" Knight, playing Perry Coote, this looked like going the way of the fortress but Kirk stuck in there and an unfortunate shot from Perry when going for the clearance left him snookered on his last ball and this allowed Kirk to get the upper hand and take the frame, 4-0 and the fortress was looking like a defeated side. On next the man with laser beams for eyesight, Kevin Thompson, when on form Kevin can pot from anywhere with un-nerving consistency, unfortunately lager plays havoc with his consistency so getting him on early is always a gimme. In this frame Kevin found his consistency and played some good shots to take us into a superb 5-0 lead. You would think with Ricky Rhead, Dave Smith and Terry Marsh to come on next 8-0 was looking on the cards, however, Grays new Gangster rapper "Mr 50 per cent" Ricky Rhead couldn't cut the mustard and dropped the frame when going for a tricky yellow along the cushion, 5-1 with Rheady cursing a new found roll on the table. Dave "Pikey" Smith on next and he could handle the pressure, again some more sublime shots from the old man of pool and he swiftly made it 6-1. Next up was "The Hammer" Terry Marsh, he has been looking like 7-balling someone since the start of the season and it was this occassion he chose to finally do it, 7-1. Number 9 was "Uncle Festa" Colin Horsler, a questionable re-rack when Colin would of had the upper hand saw Frankie Ross handed a second bite of the cherry. Colin had his chances but a missed double on the black was to cost him and Frankie managed to make it 7-2. On last for us Rob "The General" Lee, knows as the General because he generally has no luck, on this occassion though he played some good shots and sealed a memorable night with a good long black and victory, 8-2. The Anchors v Archer First up this week was again Dan Walsh, and in a tight frame Dan had to put his opponent in to a number of snookers before getting the 2 shots he needed to clear the table and give us the early lead. Second on the table was little Lewis Jackson, and he played well. He started off by knocking in a number of good pots, but looked to have got himself in to a bit of trouble with just a few balls left. However, not too long later he doubled a great yellow and cut a decent black to put us 0-2 up. Gary Brookman played third and started off well, but for some reason started to struggle half way through the frame. He mnaged to hold things together though and took the frame to make it 0-3. I played fourth and didn't play badly, but when we were both on the black, I rattled an awkward shot and the frame was lost, 1-3. Brian Wilson played fifth and played well. This was a tight frame, and Brian gave nothing away to extend our lead to 1-4. The sixth frame saw John Jackson step up and he could have played better, but as I was the only one to lose so far I couldn't talk! John scraped through in the end to make the scores 1-5. Steve Munroe played the seventh and Steve struggled on a few of his shots early on, but finished the frame well to take the frame and the points, 1-6. Geoff Riley next and he took a frame that looked scrappy for a while. With the scores at 1-7, Lewids Jackson was sent back on for another frame, and he again played well. However Lewis was unlucky to pot both the black and the white from long range, leaving the scores at 2-7. With the points safe Geoff decided he could let me have some much needed practice in the last, and I looked like I was going to get a 7-ball until I snookered myself on my last colour. From then on it was all safety play, but after a number of shots I got a chance and took it to make the final scores 2-8 to The Archer. Thanks to The Anchors who put on some great food and made the night enjoyable for everyone as always. Archer v Chadwell Club First up this week was Dan Walsh, and a poor start to the frame gave him a big hill to climb to get back in to it. Another poor shot later in the frame was enough for the frame to slip away, 0-1. Brian Wilson played second and played well, although 1 poor shot almost cost him the frame. However, Chadwell couldn't clear up and Brian made no mistakes second time round as he finished off to level the scores at 1-1. Gary Brookman next and he also had a slow start to the frame, but he soon got going and claimed the frame to make it 2-1. I played fourth and we both played quite well, but when given half a chance Steve cleared well to level the scores at 2-2. Steve Munroe played fifth, and he continued his sluggish start to the season. I'm sure he will be the first to admit that he should have cleared when given 2 shots, but missing the free ball cost him a great chance and ultimately the frame. With the scores sitting at 2-3, John Jackson was sent on to play next. I just wish I was able to put in to words how badly he played (a few words come close, but I know some kids are going to read this too so I will refrain from using that sort of language!). Suffice to say that John lost, despite having a decent chance to clear up, and we fell 2-4 behind. Geoff Riley put himself on in the seventh, and he played well to get some good snookers and he eventually got the 2 shots that he needed to make it 3-4. Unfortunately, Chadwell Club only had 7 players, and so they had to give us the eighth which levelled things up at 4-4 - well played Lewis Jackson! The ninth frame of the evening was left to Eddie Williams, who had a good chance to snatch the frame from under Chadwell's nose, but a poor choice of shots left an even better chance to put us 4-5 down. The final frame of the night was played by Geoff Riley and as usual Captain Fantastic delivered again, claiming the frame well to earn us the draw. Final score 5-5. T.C.C. v Archer Dan Walsh was given the opener this week, and in a tight frame Dan played well to come back from an awkward position to take the first frame, 0-1. The second frame saw Brian Wilson play and a few chances went begging in this one, but Brian kept his nerve and finished off well to make it 0-2. Third on was Gary Brookman and he played well, taking the frame quite comfortably to give us a 0-3 lead. I played the fourth and looked like getting a 7 ball, but I was too worried about the in off had I attempted the black. Gary played well for TCC to bring it back to a black ball game, and after a few safety shots each a mistake by me allowed him to take the frame to make it 1-3. Steve Munroe played fifth, and both players had a poor frame in this one. In the end it was a mistake by Steve that proved to be the most decisive, and the scores were now pulled back to 2-3. Denny Smith played next and did well to hold his nerve after a few early mistakes. In the end though, Denny pulled through and took the frame to make it 2-4. The seventh frame saw John Jackson play, and he probably should have won it. However as you can tell from that statement, he didn't. A few mistakes cost him the frame, and the scores were now sitting at 3-4. The eighth frame saw Eddie Williams play, and after a few nervous shots from both players Eddie kept his cool and took the frame to guarantee us at least a point - 3-5 the score. Geoff Riley played ninth, and Geoff was in an awkward position from quite early in this frame. It was very uncharacteristic, but Geoff made a few errors that made the position even more difficult, and eventually he lost his 100% record and the score was now 4-5. Gary Brookman went back on for the last frame of the night, and in all honesty he should have lost the frame. A very careless miss on the black from his opponent let him back to the table, and he didn't let the mistake go unpunished, as he finished off to take the frame and the win. Final score 4-6 to The Archer. Archer v Aveley W.M.C. The first frame of the night was played by Denny Smith, and he had another poor game by his standards. He still had a chance, but in the end a good clearance took the frame for Aveley, 0-1. John Jackson played second and was unlucky to give away 2 visits. There was still a lot of work to do though, but a great clearance took the second frame for Aveley as well, 0-2. I played third and both of us played well. I was slightly fortunate not to leave a better chance when playing a safety shot towards the end, but I managed to win the frame at my next visit, 1-2. Gary Brookman played fourth and didn't get much of a chance, as Aveley cleared well early in the frame to claim a 7-ball and make the score 1-3. The fifth frame saw Steve Munroe play and it looked like he was going to get a 7-ball back, but a poor shot left him snookered on his last colour. After that he was put in to several snookers, until finally he was edged out by the Aveley player, 1-4. Brian Wilson played sixth and this turned out to be quite tactical, but was well played by Aveley to take the frame, 1-5. Next up was Geoff Riley, and in his usual manner he played a great safety game to make sure he got the win and made the score 2-5. Lewis Jackson on next, full of confidence after last week. However, he was always on the back foot this week, and Aveley took the frame (and therefore the match) quite comfortably at 2-6. Eddie Williams played the ninth and got off to a good start, but his safety play let him down towards the end of the frame as Aveley made it 2-7. I was given the nod to play the final frame, and again played well to claw my way back in to the frame and take it to make the final scorres 3-7. Brix Mix v Archer The first frame of the night was played by John Jackson, and he put in another decent performance. He did slip up towards the end of the game, but his opponent failed to take the chance as he missed an easy clearance. First frame to The Archer, 0-1. Denny Smith played the second, and I think it would be fair to say that he didn't have his best game. Both players made a few mistakes, but in the end Denny lost out and the scores were level at 1-1. I played third and this was quite a tactical frame. It was quite an even frame, but a mistake at the end gave me 2 shots to roll the black in, 1-2. Steve Munroe played fourth, and this was another frame where we did not play as well as we should. Fortunately Steve was given a chance as his opponent fouled, and Steve didn't look back, 1-3. Lewis Jackson - our new signing at the tender age of just 14 - played against Gary Ross in the fifth, and after a slightly shaky start he played out of his skin! Lewis had an impressive start to the season last week, but eclipsed that this week by 7 balling Gary!!! Well done Lewis, and the scores were now 1-4. Dan Walsh was next up, and when trying to make a difficult clearance he was unlucky to cannon his opponents ball in. The 2 shots were enough for the frame to go to Brix, 2-4. Gary Brookman played the seventh, and this frame could have gone either way. Fortunately for us, Gary was able to keep his nerve and took the frame, 2-5. Geoff Riley played the eighth, and in another tactical frame Geoff secured the points as he won the frame, making the score 2-6. Steve Munroe played again in the ninth, and although he was fortunate to pot his last colour Steve ran out a comfortable winner, 2-7. I played the last, and after a few safety shots I took the frame. Final scores 2-8 to The Archer. Greenline v Ship Inn Great to be back for the 2008/09 Season, Visiting Greenline Club for our first match of the season. First on for Ship Inn
was Shallow Hall Ian, and a disasterous game and Greenline go 1-0 up. Gleneagles Andy on next for the Ship and wins the
second frame 1-1 the score. Dykey Dee a new Ship player was unlucky to loose frame three, Swiftly followed with Del McJock Archer v Rileys Stanford The first frame of our season was played by John Jackson, and it did not take long for him to give us a good start with a solid performance, 1-0. Lewis Jackson made his debut in the league in the second frame and did himself proud, despite just losing out to leave the scores level at 1-1. The third frame was quick, with just 2 visits to the table for each of the players. Some good potting left me in trouble, and my safety shot was not quite good enough to stop the black being doubled, 1-2. Steve Munroe played fourth, and in a close frame Steve was unfortunate to miss a ball towards the end whilst developing another ball, but he just lost out to make the scores 1-3. Dan Walsh debuted for The Archer in the fifth frame and played a good patient frame.As soon as he got the 2 shots he needed, he cleared the table easily and pulled a frame back for us, 2-3. Gary Brookman played next - another debut frame for the team - and should have levelled the scores. However, when potting the black he also cannoned his opponents red in to the corner, leaving the scores at 2-4. Geoff Riley played seventh and not surprisingly, this was a tactical frame. Both players played well, but Geoff edged the frame to pull the scores back to 3-4. Sean Gamble was next up, and a few loose shots let Sean down after a good start. A foul when on the black allowed his opponent in to clear, and the scores went to 3-5. Roy Strachan played in the ninth and did not get much of a chance, as his opponent played well. The frame, and therefore the points, went to Rileys. Tony Olley played the final frame of the night for us and played well to take the frame, leaving the final score at 4-6. Welcome Club v Billet Bullets Having moved venues during the summer we were determined to start off our defence of the title with a win away to Welcome Club. Who better to start our defence than Brian "Speedy" Shepherd, he did not disappoint and cionfidently claimed the opening frame. Mark "The Food Hoover" Nicholls on next and he was unable to start off his season with a win as Alex Major sank the black to make it 1-1. Dave "Pikey" Smith on next and despite his age and failing joints he provided yet another master class of calmness as he put us 2-1 up. Kevin "The Sniper" Thompson on next, with two on the black you would of put large quantities of cash on going 3-1 up, but alas an over hit black to miiddle left him floundering and the Welcome took their opportunity, 2-2. Next for an early bath, and boy did he need it was Ricky "Shrek" Rhead, never one to let the side down he kept his focus and we were soon 3-2 up. Up next the guvnor, Gordon "The Gofer" Logan, without a win in pre-season he was determined to show us what our new signing could do but fate can be so cruel as it landed him another defeat and were at 3-3. Next on was Terry "Almost" Marsh, having achieved numerous 7-ballers in pre-season he was looking for a firey start to the season, a 7-Baller looked on to start but a poor positional shot cost him, however, not enough for welcome to take the frame and we went 4-3 up. Up next was Mr optimisti,c Trevor "It's all Grim" Chaplin, a scrappy frame this one but but Sarah Cunningham failed to take her difficult chance and that allowed Trevor to steal in, 5-3. Captain Fantastic, Ricky "Sshhhh" Lazarus, a good break left him on a 7-baller but unfortuantely could not take the opportunity when out of position on his last red, still made the frame to take the match 6-3. "Uncle Festa" Colin Horsler on next, with one eye on next week he started confidently and never really looked to troubled, sinking the black to make it 7-3. Well done to Welcome who look to have a strong side this season, I'm sure we will not be the only side to struggle to get a result.
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